There are many things to consider when purchasing a PC.

 The first main component of a computer is the motherboard.  This is going to determine all aspects of the computer. 

      *Processer that can be installed & ability to upgrade.

      *Amount & type of memory.  DDR, Dual Channel DDR, ECC & non-ECC memory.  Also amount of slots.

      *PCI slots.  This will determine how many add-on cards can be installed.  Extra USB, sound card, video, etc.

      *IDE & RAID.  This is the configuration, speed, & number of hard drives that can be installed. 

      *BUS Speed.  This is the speed at which the motherboard will flow data for the processer & the memory.

 Processer: 

 The processer is an important factor when purchasing a desktop.  This is the main component that processes data, but not to be confused as the biggest component when determining computer speed.  We don't process data as much as we would like to think.  Most of what we do is pulling data off the hard drive & this does not have to be processed.  When selecting a processer there is a great difference between a Pentium 4 & a Celeron as there is with Athelon versus a Duron processer.  Celeron & Duron are the cheaper CPU chips & will have a great impact on performance.  Remember these are great things to build in a computer & not creat a bottleneck for data.

Memory:

It's important to know how many slots & type of memory your motherboard will hold.  Remember if you buy a motherboard with only two slots that are full, you will have to remove the memory & it simply can't be added on so you lose the money tied up in the first two memory modules.  A motherboard with four slots you could simply add on the memory modules as an addition to the existing memory.  Another key factor is the memory speed.  This is also determined by the motherboard.  Putting faster memory in a motherboard that won't support it will cut the memory speed down to what the memory will support.  An example: if I install PC3200 in a motherboard that supports PC2700 it will run the memory at PC2700 & in some cases the memory won't function at all.

Some computers need more expensive memory modules when gaming & running high memory intensive applications.  Dual channel DDR is like putting two memory modules in one slot.  Example: I have a motherboard with four dual channel memory slots.  If I fill all four it runs as if I have eight memory modules installed.  Remember the more memory modules, the more lanes of traffic you create for data.  Two 512 memory modules run more efficient than one 1Gb stick of memory because we created another lane of traffic across the motherboard. 

Hard Drive:

Next to memory the hard drive is the most crucial point of a computer speed.  Almost everything we do we are waiting on the data to come off the hard drive.  This also includes boot up time.  No matter what size the processer or memory, that speed is no good until the data comes off the hard drive.  This is the main reason why a desktop is faster than a laptop.  Most laptops have a 4400 rpm hard drive.  Roughly 75 meg a second data transfer compared to a 5400 rpm at a 100 meg a second found on the common desktop.  The best hard drive speed can be found on the new 10,000 rpm SATA hard drives.  They deliver 150 megs a second data transfer.  This is a difference that is well seen by the user noticed at boot up, transferring large files, & overall speed of applications opening.  So the best bang for the dollar on a computer system is the hard drive speed.  But make sure the motherboard supports SATA before purchasing a SATA hard drive.  Most older models will not support this.

PCI Slots & AGP:

The number of PCI slots will determine how many add-ons can be installed.  Most cheap systems will have one or no PCI slots for upgrade.  A great example would be USB ports.  Let's say I only have four, but I need a fifth.  If I have an open PCI slot I can install a USB PCI card & create four more ports.  Also handy if you want to change from on-board sound to a better sound card.  Most cheap motherboards have video & sound integrated, cutting down on their overall cost so if upgrade is important to you these factors need to be considered.

AGP is a slot used for video.  The speed & type of AGP will determine how high end of a video card can be installed.  Most common speeds are 2x, 4x, & 8x followed by the most high end PCI Express 16x that has replaced the AGP slot altogether.

BUS Speed:

BUS speed is also known as front side BUS & will determine the data flow across the motherboard & processer.  A slower Celeron chip can have a 400 front side BUS to where a Pentium 4 can have an 800 FSB.  This is the main difference in between the two main memory modules.  This is always why you're better off for a more premium processer as a Pentium 4 or high-end AMD processer.  But remember to see their true colors is important to have a fast hard drive & memory. 

I hope you've enjoyed my guide & please feel free to check out my store that includes computers & hardware.

Thanks for stopping by!

Nikita Computers